Ryan entertains at town’s organ club

Belper and District Organ and Keyboard Club will be holding its first concert of 2015 on Saturday, January 17.

Performing at The Congregational Church, Green Lane, Belper, from 7.30pm will be Ryan Edwards.

Ryan has a long association with the club dating back to 1994.

Born in Derbyshire, Ryan, 36, developed a passion for organs at an early age, through the influence of his grandfather, an amateur organist.

Ryan embarked on his first electronic organ lessons at the tender age of eight on an old Gulbranson organ. Ryan’s enthusiasm for organ playing later led him to seek tuition from top organist Tim Flint, who managed to foster his natural talent and put him at the forefront of the concert circuit.

He started his public life back in 1992, when he appeared as a junior at the National Electronic Organ Festival in Morecambe, which were followed by appearances in 1993 and 1994.

His first official booking was for the Belper Organ Society and Southport Organ and Keyboard Club in 1994. His popularity grew rapidly and bookings started coming in thick and fast.

Since 1992, he has given over 500 concerts across the British Isles as well as playing for all the major festivals. He became a professional organist in 1996.

Ryan’s first recording Skyliner was released in 1995 and he later went on to record Now ... I Know Why in 1997. A further CD Re Draft was issued in 2001.

Tracks from all three albums have been featured on the BBC Radio 2 programme The Organist Entertains. He has also produced a Performance Disk on the Yamaha EL900 for the Yamaha Club, being sold through Inter-Active, the official club magazine for the Yamaha enthusiast.

Ryan’s continued popularity on the circuit could be a result of his fresh approach to organ playing, which is reflected in the variety of styles of music in his concert programme.

He understands the need to awaken new interest in the organ especially in his generation by appealing to both traditional and modern tastes.

Admission to see Ryan in this concert is £5 for members and £7 for non-members, including refreshments.

For more details on the concert, you can call 01773 824609 or 827204.

Trending

Vile Derbyshire rapist fails in bid to cut 22-year jail term

Met Office issues snow and ice warning for Derbyshire

Man jailed for thefts from shops in Ripley and Alfreton

SNOW LATEST: Live updates as snow and ice bring disruption to Derbyshire